WILD I'LOWI-RS OF COLORADO. 35 



now," and wavin<r his hand witli a little proud gesture said, 

 "I would like to have you all come and see it." Just before 

 leaving he presented the mountain lioi , we had all so much 

 admired, to the party. It was immediately accepted, and Dick 

 commenced at once to pack it so it could be sent the following 

 day by express to a taxidermist living at Denver. 



The next day was a beautiful c^ne ; surely the climate in this 

 part of the State is perfect. We commenced climbing from 

 the very start. Up, up, we went, turning numberless "horse- 

 shoes," each one higher than the last, until wc reached the 

 summit, or Marshall Pass. The grandeur of this spot and the 

 view from it are far beyond any possible dc^scription of mine. 

 Snow sheds cover the track at this point, but large openings 

 are made on the side, and one has before him a view that 

 for height or grandeur w^ould be difficult to surpass in this or 

 any other country. 



We made a very short stop here, but Dick found time to dig 

 up for me this fine Gilia. The pass was red with them. I 

 think them the most graceful of the wild flowers. As they 

 are approached they seem to move from you and to beckon you 

 on with their constantly swaying motion. The stems, as you 

 see, are very slender, and often run u\) to a height of two feet. I 

 have counted forty blossoms on one stem. The blossom much 

 resembles the cypress, and the Gilia is often called standing 

 cypress. 



Our ride down Marshall Pass was an excitino- one. Down, 



